A May's Day
by Kora
Summary: don't go wandering around at night by yourself. amd just might get you...


A May's Day

by Jenn and Angela (aka Jel and Kora)

_story of this story: ever since reading everyday, jel's wanted to write a sequel-of-sorts too it.  she just finds the ending too tempting to pass up the opportunity for a story that it leaves gaping open.  I had to agree with her, and here we are.  Over the past two nights, jel and I wrote this together in sorta a round-robin kinda way.  She'd write some, im it to me, and then I'd do the same until we were finished.  And voila.  _

J sat on her bed, staring at the clock with her night table.  It would 

take Alan about 15 minutes to get home.  15 minutes.  She could wait that long.  She hopped off her bed and skipped into the kitchen.  J whipped open the freezer door, pulled out a pint of ice cream, and grabbed a spoon.  She pranced back into her room and flapped down onto the bed, a spoonful of ice cream already in her mouth.  14 minutes later, she picked up the phone and punched in Alan's number. 

Ring. Riiing.  Riiiing.  There was a click, and, "Hello, you've reached 

the home of Michael Johnson and Alan Yoast.  We're not home right now, but leave a message and your name/number, and we'll get back to you as soon as we can."  J hung up the phone dejectedly with a grumble followed by a sigh.  'Fine, Alan, be that way.  Take your time getting home.' 

Ten minutes later, J tried calling Alan again.  Again, no answer.  Now 

she was beginning to get worried.  Mike was out of town for the weekend, so he had an excuse not to be home.  But where was Alan?  Maybe he took a side trip...stopped by Coach's or somewhere like that.  All common sense told J not to worry, just go to bed and everything will be okay. 

But common sense didn't always hold true.  J had an uneasy, churning feeling in her stomach.  She'd only felt like this twice before in her life, both times long ago.  But both of those times hadn't been good.  J chewed on her lip and tried calling Alan one last time.  Still nothing. J jumped up, threw her jacket back on, and ran out the door. 

J made it to Alan's house in almost no time at all. She hadn't seen anything weird during the drive, and if Alan wasn't at home, she was going to stop at Coach's house.  She parked her car along the side of the street, got out, and ran to the front door. There were no lights on inside, and there were no lights on outside. One lone streetlight stood at the end of the street, but it didn't do much good because of the thick fog. 

The redhead knocked on the door and waited for an answer. After several moments and no answer, she knocked again. No answer. J fidgeted as she tried to peek inside through the small windows at the top of the door. She could barely see in, but what she could see was dark. 

Turning around, she quickly walked towards her car. Maybe Coach would know where he was. Just as she reached her car, she happened to notice a crumpled form on the sidewalk. The fog was so heavy that she could just make out the face; it was Alan! 

***** 

Alan kicked at a pebble in front of him and watched it go bouncing off into the mist.  He hated nights.  Well, not really.  Just nights after she was gone.  Then things were so dark and lonely and oppressive.  Without Jules...Alan didn't know what he'd do.   

Alan felt a strange pain all of a sudden.    

Surprised, he shook it off and continued walking.  A few moments later it flared up again, stronger this time.  Alan coughed, rubbed at his neck, and kept going.  Just as his house was in sight, his vision blurred.  Within seconds, he was on the pavement, unconscious.    

***** 

J rushed to Alan's side, trying to keep from panicking. He was so still. Kneeling down next to him, she warily felt for his pulse, as she had learned to do girl scouts before she had dropped out of it. 

Thank God! He was still breathing, although his pulse was really slow. His skin was clammy and so, so pale. 

Taking a quick survey of his body, she was thankful to find that there were no injuries, or anything. Then she almost panicked even more. He was lying on the sidewalk, passed out, and there was no outward cause for it. Not good! 

Alan's keys were in his limp hand; grabbing them, J ran for the front door. She almost kicked the locked door in impatience when the key stuck. Finally, the door swung open and she ran for the telephone. 

'Please let him be okay,' she begged as she waited for a 9-1-1 operator to pick up the phone. 'He has to be okay!' 

**** 

J didn't remember her conversation with the operator.  It was all a jumble of infuriating questions and stupid answers, like where Alan lived and where they were right now and what was wrong with him.  Why were they asking these stupid questions?  Why didn't they just come and help? 

After an eternity, the operator finally said those blessed words, help is on the way.  Hopefully, it would be fast enough.  J rushed back outside to Alan.  She contemplated trying to move him inside for a second, but decided against it.  She didn't know what was wrong with Alan, and it might be best not to move him in the slight chance that it would make him even worse.  Besides, the ambulance was coming to that very spot. 

J found Alan's hand and squeezed it tightly.  It was too discomfortingly cold.  "Hold on, Alan," J whispered.  "Hold on."  She gazed at his pale face unwaveringly, drawing little but more than none comfort from the shallow wheeze coming from his lungs.  Finally, a siren pierced the air and red and white lights could be seen through the mists.  The ambulence was there.    

J sat on the ground in a daze as she watched the white-clad paramedics rush out of the emergency vehicle, strap all sorts of tubes and wires to alan, and plop him into a stretcher.  She broke out of her reviere only when she realized that they were going to go somewhere with alan without her.  "hey!  no!" she pushed through the paramedics.  "i'm going with you!" one man, who looked in charge, tried to stop her.  

"I'm sorry ma'm, but you can't--"

"don't you tell me what i can and cannot do!" she snapped.  "you're not taking him anywhere without me.  he's my fiance, and i go where he goes!"  with that, she pushed her way into the ambulance and took a seat next to alan.  she leaned over him and pushed the hair off his forehead. "i'm not going anywhere till i see your eyes looking at me again," she murmured.

Alan was floating in a strange world. It wasn't neither dark, nor bright. Not warm or cold. It was just ... sort of there. He felt strangely disconnected from his body. Through what seemed like a long tunnel he could hear a few voices talking with an urgency that was disconcerting. He could hear J's voice at an octave above the others. Yet, he couldn't tell what they were saying.

Without warning, a sharp pain flared up in the back of his neck all the way up to his head. It was so sharp--it felt like there was a knife running up and down in his back. Moaning, he tried to roll away from the pain, but something held him in place. 

"Hold on, Alan," J's voice seemed to echo through his head. "You'll be okay. Just hold on."

***

if j thought that waiting for the ambulance to arrive was bad, than the ride to the hospital was horrifying.  she knew that everyone riding with her and alan were professionals, but all the strange tubes and wires they had criss-crossing his body terrified her.  it made him look like he was dying.  and alan WAS NOT dying.

when they arrived at the hospital, the impossible happened.  they took alan away.  without her.  it all happened so fast, j was still processing it.  she was just so tired and drained and worn.  all she remembered was a blur of rushing from here to there, her grabbing onto alan's stretcher and refusing to let go, being pryed off by the strong yet gentle hands of the doctor's assistants.  

now she sat in a chair in the waiting room.  she'd called coach.  he was on his way.  she'd called him and been able to do nothing but cry and choke out the words "alan" and "hospital."  coach, being coach, figured out the rest.  and now here he was.  he strided to her in a matter of seconds and wrapped her in a hug.  j could do nothing but bawl into his shoulder.  "i hate this place, hate it, hate it!" she cried.  "i thought it was all over...that we'd never have to come here again, that he'd never be in one of those sickeningly white rooms again...it was all supposed to be over when we were kids."

coach held j and contemplated everything.  he'd gotten a report from one of the doctors before meeting j.  he considered telling her, but stopped.  nothing he could say would be comforting.  there wasn't anything to say.

***

Cold... he was so cold. Alan couldn't stop his body from shivering. He heard all of the sounds that used to be familiar... the hissing of oxygen masks, the beeping of monitors and the crying of people in pain. He had long been aquainted with those sounds before anyone else knew. 

Alan started shaking even more as he remembered secret trips to the emergency room to take care of "accidental" sprains and broken bones. He could just remember one time when his father had spun a whole story about him falling down the stairs. 

The pain attacked him again, and he arched his back to keep from screaming. This was worse than any broken bone. It hurt so bad. And all he wanted was J to be next to him . . . for her to hold his hand. He wanted Coach, too. He wanted the man that he considered his real dad. 

***

suddenly, j stopped crying.  it hurt.  not the crying, something else.  coach sensed the change.  he released her.  "what is it, j?"  

"alan," she whispered.  "he needs me.  needs us."  she stood and walked in the direction that they had taken alan. a doctor was on his way out to give them a report.  he saw j walking by.  he tried to talk to her, but coach stopped him.

"just give me the updated report.  i'll tell her later.  there's no use in trying to tell her now, she won't hear anything till she's with him."

***

j entered the room.  there he was.  it was all so cliche by now.  only this time he was paler than ever before.  and all the cords and wires made him look half-robotic.  but none of that mattered.  it was him.  j walked over to his side and pulled up a chair.  she sat and stared at him for a moment, taking his hand in hers.  then she laid her head down next to his arm and was instantly asleep.

***

Alan vaguely felt weight shift on the bed. A soft scent floated through the air, and suddenly, the pain in his body diminished. J was there. She was going to make everything okay. She took his hand in hers; then he felt her soft hair brushing against his arm. 

"Alan. . . ." Coach's voice started softly, then broke off when his voice cracked. 

Coach picked up Alan's other hand and stroked it softly, trying to regain control of his emotions. His boy ... *his* boy was lying there ... and according to the doctors they didn't know how long he would be there.

Looking over, Coach smiled softly at the sight of the sleeping J. She had worn herself out with her fright and worry. It was good that she could sleep. She would need all that she could get. 

AMD ... he still couldn't believe it. 

***

she knew.  somehow she just knew.  the three letters echoed in her brain.  it was like alan was trying to tell her.  she didn't want to wake up.  asleep, she was warm.  it was light and soft and alan was there.  he told her not to be scared.  but she knew when she awoke, he wouldn't be able to talk to her.  and then she didn't know if she could be strong.

against her firmest protests, her eyes slowly opened and the room focused.  "ughh..." she muttered.  j turned her head to coach's, refusing to look at alan.  she knew what would happen then: the tears battering at her eyes would be set loose.  j didn't want to cry.  crying didn't get anything done.  

like a trickle, she remembered what she was supposed to do.  "c'mon coach," she said hoarsely.  "let's get something to eat."  

coach stared at her in shock.  he'd been preparing to attempt to coax her into eating (though he doubted that he'd be successful) and here she was proposing the idea to him.  "you're sure?" he asked.

j took a deep, shuddering breath as she stole a gaze at alan.  "yes.  he won't wake up while we're gone.  he'll wait."  she brushed the tears off.  "besides, we need our strength.  if we don't have ours, we can't lend any to alan.  so come on."  she smiled weakly at coach and allowed him to steer her out of the room.

Alan sensed that J and Coach were out of the room. Their warm presense was missing. And so, he decided that he didn't want to wake up yet. He was scared that he was going to wake up, and a doctor was going to tell him something that he didn't want to know. He was especialy scared that he wouldn't be able to handle it. He needed J by his side. He needed Coach.

 He lay there, on the border between consciousness and the dream world. Then the pain flared up again. Moaning, he slipped into a deep sleep where the pain couldn't find him.

*****

J tried to eat. Really, she did. But her mind was so caught up on Alan that all she could do was push her eggs around her plate. She took a bite and chewed slowly, trying to take her mind off of her fiance for just a second. 

A glance across the table showed that Coach was feeling the same. His plate was mostly untouched. His eyes met hers and she suddenly knew that he knew what Alan's problem was.

"Is it AMD?" she asked, laying her fork down.

***

it was.  she'd known that it was.  deep down.  and that's what she'd been preparing for.  alan'd been preping her, too.  the hardest part was almost here.the danger with amd was waking up.  it could be years before you woke up with amd.  however, once you woke up, you were fairly treatable.  weak for awhile certainly, but treatable nonetheless.

so all she had to do was wake him.

***

j was asleep right next to alan again.  the asleep part hadn't been hard.  and now she could communicate with him in that strange, fuzzy way.  but it wasn't communication that she was really seeking.  it was something else.  in her sleeping state, j squeezed alan's hand tighter and tighter until her hand slowly began to grow limper.  her breathing slowed.

***

alan's fingers twitched.  his fingers slowly curled around j's.  his breathing picked up.

***

 Coach was the first to notice the change in Alan's condition. He noticed the way the pain reflected in Alan's face smoothed out. He noticed how Alan was lying as if he was just relaxing in bed.

"J," Coach whispered, trying to wake the redhead up. "J! He's coming around."

J didn't move.

Reaching over, Coach slightly shook her shoulder. She limply moved, not even in the slightest bit aware of her surroundings. Her face was lax from all emotions.

"Coach?" Alan's voice, unnaturally soft and scratchy, spoke from the bed.  "Is J asleep?"

Coach licked his lips and smiled as best he could at alan.  "I'd say so, son."

Alan managed to lean over and glance at her face.  A different kind of pain suddenly appeared in his chest.  "She doesn't look asleep..." he said falteringly.  Coach reached over and lay a hand on alan's shoulder.

"don't worry, alan.  she must be passed out from exhaustion.  she's barely gotten any sleep since you collapsed...why, that was nearly 24 hours ago.  not to mention all her fear and worry.  it's drained her.  she'll be awake soon.  why don't you try and rest."

alan chewed at his lip and gazed from j to coach and back again.  something bothered him, but there was nothing he could do besides what coach suggested.  so he allowed himself to drift back off to sleep.

***

J felt so relaxed. There was no worrying or tears or fright where she was. For some reason she knew that Alan was okay. Even though she didn't know exactly where she, herself, was, she knew that she was okay, too. 

Her fingers were entwined with Alan's, and she felt him squeeze her hand. His thumb stroked the back of her hand, and she suddenly realized that he was worried.

_'I'm okay,'_ she tried to tell him. _'I'm fine, and you're gonna be fine!'_

***

Alan had woken up again about an hour after going back to sleep.  The doctor'd come in, checked him over, and with slight astonishment in his voice proclaimed that alan had a very mild case of amd that could easily be killed if he stayed on regular medication for a month or so and reduced his activity to a minimum.  they wanted to keep alan overnight just to make sure he was ready to go home, but no one forsaw any problems.

the only problem was j.  everyone else told him that she needed a long rest from all the stress of the past few days, but he had trouble believing them.  he'd felt her, right before waking up.  then all of a sudden she'd disappeared.  it was almost like she'd traded...no.  he couldn't allow himself to think like that.  she was going to be fine.

***

now alan stood in the bed beside hers.  the next day had come and he was ready to leave.  but leave he wouldn't until j went with him.  he caressed her hand in his and prayed to see the warm hazel sea of her eyes again.

***

_'alright, enough is enough.  i'll have plenty of time for sleeping for the rest of my life.  i've got to keep alan from worrying himself so much that he ends up in a bad condition again.  so here we go...' _

*****

Alan gasped. Her eyes were twitching! And her fingers were starting to move across the sheets. Alan almost laughed. She looked like she was playing the piano! Nothing could keep her away from her music.

"J, wake up, sweetie," he whispered, taking one of her hands into both of his. He held her hand up to his lips and kissed it gently. "Wake up. Please. J, I need you."

Suddenly, her eyes opened and her mouth curved into a small smile.

***

it was a gorgeous late spring day.  the first day of june, to be precise.  j and alan strolled, arm and arm, along the path of the park where it had all began.  the doctor had perscribed a short walk each day for alan to keep him exercising slightly, but nothing that might irritate his body.

the couple decided that maybe nights weren't the best time for outdoor dates, so daytime it was.  alan looked over at j  and decided that  he enjoyed the day better.  he loved the way the sun played with j's hair, making different sections of it different shades of red.  j beamed back at him, thinking thoughts much along the same lines.

suddenly, her smile contorted to a frustrated frown.  "just what does amd stand for, anyway?"

end. 

_Brownie points/bragging rights to anyone who can correctly guess what amd is!  Hehe…me'n jel just are curious to see if anyone has any clue, that's all.  Oh and no fair if we've already told you (we've told like 2 people).  Hehe…_


End file.
